Cultivator attachment for tractors



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0V 5 H935- v L. c. HEsTER CULTIVATOR ATTACHMENT FOR TRACTORS Filed Feb.6, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 l s l R E T s E H c. L

Filed Feb: 6, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet? Patented Nov. 5, 1935 UNITED smi`CULTIVATOR ATTACHMENT FOR 'EB/ACTORS Levi C. Hester, Jacksonville, Fla.

Application February 6, 1935, Serial No. 5,291

4 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in cultivator attachments fortractors, and it consists in the combinations, constructions andarrangements herein described and claimed.V

An object of my invention is to provide an attachment whereby cultivatordisks may be disposed in operative arrangement at one side of a tractor,but attached in the central longitudinal axis of the tractor therebyfacilitating the guidance and preventing the undue deviation of thetractor from the normal line of travel.

A further object is to provide means for lifting the cultivator discs soas to permit thetractor to be moved easily from place to place.

A further object of the invention is to provide an arrangement in whichthe disks are disposed on one side of the central longitudinal axis, butin such a manner that when the cultivating is done there will be notractor wheel marks and the eld will be left in smooth condition.

A further object is to provide a device in which one disk precedes thewheel, thereby leaving a smooth furrow in which the wheel can travel andanother disk covers up the track made by the wheel.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specificationandthe novel features y of the invention will be particularly pointedout in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming part ofthis application in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of the device, one wheel being removed and aportion of the gear housing being shown in section.

Figure 2 is a plan View of a pivot shaft and the cultivator diskssupported thereby, and,

Figure 3 is a rear view of a portion of the' device. l

In carrying out my invention I make use of a tractor of any standardconstruction. Thus in Fig. 1 the frame of the tractor is indicated at l,the motor at 2, the front wheels at 3, the drive wheels at I3 and asteering mechanism at 5. The differential housing ii Vis extended onboth sides, as shown at 1--see Fig. S-and at the end of each extensionis secured a gear housing 8. In the present instance a shaft 9-see Fig.1- passes through each housing l and terminates in Va pinion lll whichengages a gear VIl on a stub shaft I2. Each stub shaft bears a tractorwheel As will be seen from Fig. 3, bracketsV lll are secured to theinner sides of the drums or housings 8. A cross bar l5 is adjustablysecured to these of the pivot rod along its axis.

openings U-shaped bolts 2l extend and are pro-10;

vided with nuts 22 for clamping the ends of the U-shaped suspendingmember to the frame l in adjusted positions. The suspending member l isprovided with a bearing 23 similar to the bearing il, these bearingsbeing in alinement as 15 shownV in Fig. l.

A pivot shaft 24 is mounted in the bearings l1 and 23. It is providedwith lugs 25 on each side ofthe bar l5 to prevent longitudinal movementpivot rod is a laterally extending arm 26 which is provided with a stubshaft Ela-upon which is mounted a cultivator disk 2Q, a spacing member3@ being disposed immediately behind the disk, and having a contourconforming with that 25 of the disk. A brace member 3l extends from thebearing to the pivot rod Zt, being rmly secured thereto by welding or inany other suitable manner. At the opposite end of the pivot rod is anarm 32 which extends forwardly to a brace 30 member 33, on which ispivotally mounted a cultivator disk 34. It will be noted that the disk2t extends further from the pivot rod than the disk 34.

Referring again to Fig. 3 it will be seen that 35 Y there is a smallfriction wheel 35 disposed on a shaft 36 passing through a housing 3l,and which is connected with the driving mechanism within thedifferential housing in any well known manner. Mounted on the housing 3lis a bracket 38. 40 A bell crank lever 39 is pivotally mounted atlil-see Fig. l-on this bracket, one end of this bell crank lever havinga pivotally mounted friction wheel l. A spring @l2 which is attached tothe lever 3% normally holds the wheel lll against 45 a brake block 43.When however, the lever 39 is pulled rearwardly then the wheel Lil willbe swung away from the brake block and down into contact with thefriction wheelV 35, thereby im- Y parting a rotary motion to thewheellli. V The shaft of the latter is prolonged and has a chain del woundthereon. This chain is attached to a link i5 connected with a bell cranklever 6, which is pivoted at lll and the opposite end of which isconnected by a chain 48 with a 55 Secured to the 20 beam 49. The beam 49is pivotally connected at its opposite end at 50 to a plate 5l, which isfastened to the ange of one of the gear drums 8, this flange being shownat 52. A chain 53 is connected at one end to the beam 49 and at theother end to the frame which holds the cultivator disks.

From the foregoing description of the Various parts of the device theoperation thereof may be readily understood. The cultivator disk 29 islocated in front of the rear right-hand tractor wheel I3 in the presentinstance, so that the furrow made by this cultivator disk :forms a pathfor the travel of the tractor wheel. The rear disk 34, as will be seenfrom Fig. 3, is disposed in such a position as to throw the dirtoutwardly to cover the track of the wheel.

The construction is such that the line of draft is in the centrallongitudinal axis of the tractor, and therefore there is very littletendency for the tractor to be swung around out of its normal positionof travel even though the cultivator disks are at one side thereof.

When it is desired to elevate the cultivator disks so as to permit thetractor to move freely from the eld to the house, or vice versa, thelever 39 is grasped and pulled rearwardly. This will result in bringingthe wheel 4| into contact with the wheel 35 and the winding up of thechain 44 and the lifting of the two disks by the raising of the beam 49and the swinging of the frame carrying the disks on the pivot rod 24.When the lever 39 is released the wheel 49 is brought back against thebrake block 40, which holds the disks in their elevated position. Whenit is desired to lower the disks the lever 39 is moved just far enoughto bring the wheel 4| away from the block 43, but not far enough tobring it into engagement with the wheel 35 and the weight of themechanism will cause the disks to return to their normal position.

It will be observed that this lever may be also a means oi' regulatingthe depth of the cut, since the power means may raise the plows as faras desired. The depth of the cut may also be regulated by the suspendingmembers l5 and I9, as already described.

I claim:

1. The combination with a tractor having drive wheels, of a framepivotally mounted on the central longitudinal axis of the tractor, acultivator disk carried by said frame in frone of one of said tractorwheels, and a cultivator disk carried by the frame rearwardly of saidtractor wheel 5 in a position to throw the dirt into the track left bythe tractor wheel.

2. The combination with a tractor having drive wheels, of a framepivotally mounted on the central longitudinal axis of the tractor, a,cultivator l disk carried by said frame in front of one of said tractorwheels, a cultivator disk carried by the frame rearwardly of saidtractor wheel in a position to throw the dirt into the track left by thetractor wheel, and manually actuated means for l applying the enginepower of the tractor to raise the disks simultaneously.

3. The combination with a tractor having drive wheels, of a pivot rodrotatably disposed along the central longitudinal axis of the tractor, acultivator disk carried by one end of said pivot rod and disposed infront of one of said tractor wheels, a second cultivator disk carried bysaid pivot rod rearwardly of said tractor wheels in position to throwthe dirt on the track of the tractor wheel, a pivoted beam, a flexibleconnection between said pivot beam and the outer end of the diskcarrying means, and manually actuated means for throwing the power ofthe tractor engine on the pivoted beam to raise the latter,

cultivator disk carried by one end of said pivot A rod and disposed infront of one of said tractor wheels, a second cultivator disk carried bysaid pivot rod rearwardly of said tractor wheels in position to throwthe dirt on the track of the tractor wheels, a pivotedV beam a flexibleconnection between said pivot beam and the outer end of the diskcarrying means, manually actuated means for throwing the power of thetractor engine on the pivoted beam to raise the latter, whereby thecultivator disks are raised, and 5 means for holding the cultivatordisks in their raised position.

LEVI C. BESTER.

